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Salah, Lewandowkski and Bayern Headline Midseason Awards

· Dec 26 - 6 minutes read

We’re approaching the new year and the midway point of the 2021-22 season in Europe’s top five leagues. PSG and Bayern, two of the best soccer picks of the season, are running away from the rest of the pack in Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga.

Meanwhile, the other leagues should have competitive title races. The Premier League, in particular, is set for an incredibly competitive three team race. There’s plenty to talk about in each league and we figured we’d spread the holiday cheer with some midseason awards.

Robert Lewandowski celebrates Midway Awards — Christof STACHE / AFP

Midway Awards 2021-22

Biggest Surprise: Rayo Vallecano

Madrid is a footballing hotspot. Defending La Liga Champions Atletico Madrid and current La Liga leaders Real Madrid both call the city home. But, there’s a lesser known Madrid team also making waves.

Rayo Vallecano have gone from finishing sixth in the Segunda Division to fourth in La Liga in the span of just seven months. They improbably won the Segunda Division playoff and have hit the ground running in the top tier.

Manager Andoni Iraola has done an incredible job with this group and they’ve quickly become one of soccer’s biggest stories. They’re one point ahead of Atletico right now, who Rayo striker Radamel Falcao used to play for.

Rayo have won 25 points at home in just nine matches and look to have a bright future ahead of them. Midfielder and captain Oscar Trejo leads La Liga in assists, while striker Alvaro Garcia has done a great job defending from the front. He leads the team with five La Liga goals and constantly puts pressure on opposing defenses.

While I don’t think Los Franjirrojos will make the top four come season’s end, it is shocking that they’re in the mix halfway through.

Biggest Disappointment: VfL Wolfsburg

Wolfsburg participated in the Champions League this season but they’re in 13th in the Bundesliga, just three points above the relegation playoff spot.

Former manager Oliver Glasner departed Die Wolfe in the Summer to go to Frankfurt. His Eintracht side are now eight places ahead of Wolfsburg.

The manager who replaced Glasner, Mark van Bommel, was fired in October after just 13 matches in charge. His successor, Florian Kohfeldt, is also struggling to get the best from his players.

Die Wolfe disappointingly lost their last two Champions League matches and finished last in their group. Wolfsburg’s recent 4-0 loss to Bayern Munich was also their fifth Bundesliga loss in a row and now they’re in complete disarray.

Striker Lukas Nmecha is out with an ankle injury and Wout Weghorst hasn’t come close to matching his goal scoring pace from last season. There’s time for a turnaround but it’s somewhat unbelievable that this is virtually the same team that finished in the top four last season.

Manager of the Mid-Year: Manuel Pellegrini

West Ham were languishing in 17th place when Manuel Pellegrini was sacked two years ago. The former Manchester City manager got an opportunity to redeem himself with Real Betis in the Summer of 2020. He had his work cut out for him as the Seville club had finished in 15th place the season prior.

Pellegrini’s first season was a success as Los Verdiblancos finished sixth and qualified for the Europa league for the first time in three years. This season, Pellegrini has them believing they can make the Champions League for the first time since 2005-06.

Real Betis are in third place in La Liga and just had their four-game win streak snapped. After a resounding 4-0 win over Real Sociedad, Betis narrowly lost 3-2 at Bilbao. They’ve scored the second most goals in the league and have been a nuisance to play against.

Pellegrini has gotten the most out of his midfield and taken advantage of competition in multiple positions.

Forward Juanmi is in the best form of his career and has scored 11 goals in 16

matches. Nabil Fekir has been a great creator in attacking midfield. The defense has also improved significantly this season and Pellegrini has done a great job of squad rotation.

Betis are also in the knockout round of the Europa League and have +2500 soccer odds to win the competition. The ceiling is high for Los Verdiblancos.

Team of the Mid-Season: Bayern Munich

This one comes as no surprise. Bayern Munich have made a habit of mercilessly pummeling teams this season and show no signs of letting up. Under new manager Julian Nagelsmann, the Bavarians are well on their way to a record tenth straight Bundesliga title.

Bayern recently won the biggest game in German soccer over Borussia Dortmund, 3-2. They have scored the most goals of any team in Europe’s top five leagues and have the best goal difference. 56 goals in 17 matches is frankly ridiculous and so is outsourcing opponents by an average of 2.4 goals per game.

Robert Lewandowski continues to break records and has scored 19 goals in just 17 matches. The midfield is possibly the world’s best, with Joshua Kimmich, Leon Goretzka and Thomas Muller. Bayern, a great pick for betting online, also sent Barcelona home in the Champions League and finished first in Group E.

Golden Shoe: Robert Lewandowksi

The top scorer in Europe’s five leagues, Robert Lewandowksi broke Gerd Muller’s record for most Bundesliga goals in a calendar year. In Bayern Munich’s dominant 4-0 win over Wolfsburg, Lewandowski scored his 43rd Bundesliga goal of 2021.

One of the greatest strikers of all time, Lewandowski is well on his way to his second consecutive Golden Shoe. The 33-year-old has 19 Bundesliga goals in just 17 matches and is the biggest weapon on Europe’s most dangerous team.

He’s the biggest reason why Bayern are the highest-scoring team in Europe. Lewandowski will undoubtedly be looking to break more records and get more silverware as the season goes on.

Player of the Mid-Year: Mohamed Salah

Mo Salah, the Egyptian Messi, became the fifth-fastest player to reach 100 Premier League goals earlier this season. Salah has been a revelation for Liverpool since joining in 2017 and he’s still playing at a World Class level.

Salah leads the Premier League in goals by a country mile and also leads the league in assists. He’s been the most important player for Liverpool as they waltzed through the Champions League Group Stage and challenge Man City for the EPL title.

He was the third-leading scorer in the UCL Group Stage as Liverpool won all six of their matches. The Reds have solid +500 sportsbook odds to win the competition for the second time in Salah’s tenure.

Salah’s scoring output, work rate and creativity will be sorely missed when he misses January for the Africa Cup of Nations. There’s still a very good chance he’ll lead the EPL in goals when he comes back.